ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. bat — the animal
  5. mate — a partner
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. mate — a friend
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — a hat
  11. staff — employees
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. clip — a video
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. clip — to cut
  20. staff — employees
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cap — of ice
  23. wax — to grow
  24. mate — to breed

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com